Final answer:
Blood glucose levels are critical in diagnosing and managing diabetes. A fasting glucose level below 100 mg/dL is normal, 100-125 mg/dL is pre-diabetic, and above 125 mg/dL indicates diabetes. Blood sugar tests help monitor these levels to prevent hyperglycemia or hypoglycemia.
Step-by-step explanation:
When considering the question about not knowing if blood glucose levels are high or low, we need to look at diabetes and blood-sugar tests to understand the importance of accurately measuring glucose levels.
Diabetes is diagnosed when there are abnormally high levels of blood glucose after fasting for at least 12 hours.
For a normal person, a fasting blood glucose level below 100 mg/dL is considered healthy, 100 to 125 mg/dL suggests pre-diabetes, and a level above 125 mg/dL is indicative of diabetes.
Measuring the level of glucose in the blood involves using a blood drop on a test strip that is read by a meter.
In the case of Type 2 diabetes, the body's cells do not respond to normal amounts of insulin, which results in the cells not taking up glucose, causing an accumulation in the bloodstream.
This condition is known as hyperglycemia and can be quite serious, requiring treatment with medication, diet, and sometimes additional insulin.
It is important to manage blood glucose levels effectively to prevent both hyperglycemia (where blood glucose is too high) and hypoglycemia (where blood glucose is too low).